Building Victoria Safely

By John Setka – Secretary, CFMEU Vic-Tas

Construction in Victoria, and especially in Melbourne, continues to boom. Just look across the skyline and you can see it for yourself. From Australia 108 to Collins Arch to suburban developments like TEd Monash and M-City, there are cranes everywhere.

One of the key reasons behind this ongoing boom is the effort of CFMEU members who are working hard every day to make it happen. As their union, we will always do our best to make sure workers get rewarded fairly for the part they are playing in making this city the best it can be. We will never stop working to be sure that our members are paid what they deserve and that they can get home safely every night.

I know first-hand just how dangerous this work is, and the impact it can have on families. I was just a boy when the West Gate Bridge collapsed. My dad came down with it. Luckily, he survived, but it still had a huge impact on our family, especially my mum.

As we saw at the 49th anniversary of the collapse, there were dozens of other workers who did not get their see their families again.

To make sure we give our members the best protection we have teamed up with the best workplace lawyers in the country, Maurice Blackburn. You’ve probably heard their motto: We Fight For Fair. It’s almost as good as some of ours, and we reckon we’ll make a great team. In fact, we are already seeing the results of that partnership.

For more information about the West Gate Bridge Memorial go to westgatebridge.org and for Maurice Blackburn go to mauriceblackburn.com.au